Israel was prepared to shoot down a FlyDubai passenger plane carrying more than 150 Israelis after the co-pilot attacked the captain and allegedly attempted to crash the aircraft, an international media outlet reported.
The report, quoting two Israeli sources with direct knowledge of the situation, said that the flight from Dubai to Tel Aviv was approaching Israel last week when the co-pilot allegedly stabbed the captain in the cockpit and attempted to crash the aircraft.
Israeli Prime Minister (PM) Benjamin Netanyahu, passengers on board and the captain have also said that the co-pilot attempted to bring down the plane.
According to the report, Israel has a long-established procedure for handling a possible 9/11-style attack involving a passenger aircraft. The plane plunged 14,000 feet after the alleged cockpit attack, prompting the Israeli Air Force to attempt contact with the cockpit. The crew did not respond.
A pre-established committee was then activated and a command centre was set up. Israel scrambled fighter jets and closed its airspace as authorities assessed the situation.
The aircraft turned towards Saudi Arabia when it was around 400 miles from Israel, after which Saudi Arabia scrambled its own fighter jets. Israel then called back its fighter aircraft.
The report stated that the captain fought off the co-pilot long enough to unlock the cockpit door. Israeli passengers and FlyDubai staff then overpowered the co-pilot, while two off-duty pilots travelling on the flight took control of the aircraft.
The flight later made an emergency landing in Tabuk, Saudi Arabia.
The international media outlet, citing Israeli sources, reported that if Flight 1073 had continued towards Israel and reached a certain distance, Israeli fighter jets would have entered Jordanian airspace to investigate.
The Israeli pilots would have approached the aircraft as closely as possible, attempting to establish visual contact with the cockpit and assess the situation. They will then inspect the cabin to determine the condition of the passengers.
If the pilots saw signs of panic, they will relay their observations to the Israeli Air Force and the pre-established committee.
The report said that if authorities determined the plane had been hijacked, while the suspected hijacker remained silent on the radio and made no demands, the committee would bring the defence minister and prime minister into the decision-making process.
Under the protocol, a rogue aircraft approaching Israel will be shot down, but only the prime minister can authorise the action.
The Israeli sources told the outlet that shooting down the passenger aircraft will be considered preferable to allowing it to crash into a high-value target, including the Azrieli buildings or the airport, where hundreds could be killed.
The co-pilot also told investigators in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) that he had planned the attack before joining FlyDubai, an Israeli official told the outlet.
Sources familiar with the investigation identified the co-pilot as Omani national Hamam al Hamami. The Israeli official said that Hamami intended to crash the plane at Ben Gurion Airport and had previously travelled to Israel.
An initial Israeli investigation indicates that the attempted hijacking was likely a lone-wolf attack, according to sources familiar with the matter cited in the report.
